Matthew 8:18-22

Jacob Whitaker

Matthew • Sermon • Submitted 6 years ago

Matthew 8:18–22

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Introduction

English Standard Version Chapter 8

The Cost of Following Jesus

18 Now when Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. 19 And a scribe came up and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” 20 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” 21 Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 22 And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.”

As we move on to the next series of miracles performed at the hands of Jesus, Matthew first transports us to the Sea of Galilee where Jesus is standing along the road, it’s at this point that Matthew sets the stage for what will take place in verses 23-27, which is when Jesus calms a storm while on the Sea of Galilee. But before Matthew moves on, he shares with us an account of Jesus' interaction with two of his disciples. You can think of this as sort of an interlude between Matthew’s list of miracles here in chapter 8.

So let’s take a closer look at this text and read again verse 18,

English Standard Version Chapter 8

18 Now when Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side.

When Jesus sees that he's surrounded by a growing crowd of followers he orders them to go over to the other side of lake. Despite his orders a scribe remains behind and approaches Jesus and says, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." And also another disciple remains and says to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."

So when Jesus sees that he's surrounded by a growing crowd of followers he orders them to go over to the other side of lake. Now you might ask, “Why?” Why does Jesus order this crowd to go over to the other side of the Sea of Galilee?

While this text doesn't give us the answer, I think it's a fair assumption that Jesus intended to rest. In fact, just a few verses later in verse 25 we see Jesus asleep in a boat with his close disciples, and we'll also see later in chapter 14 that Jesus similarly withdraws from the crowds to a desolate place in order to be by himself. There are also other times when Jesus withdraws from the crowds in order to teach his disciples, like he does during his famous Sermon on the Mount back in Matthew chapter 5, despite the crowds still seemingly listening in.

We can also pretty easily discern where Jesus meant when he ordered the crowd to go to the other side of the lake. Luke tells us that Jesus is standing alongside a road, and likely near the shoreline in Capernaum. Now, Capernaum was located on the northwest corner of the Sea of Galilee. And when we read ahead in verse 28 we read, "And when he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demon-possessed men met him, coming out of the tombs." Or as Luke in chapter 8, verse 26 records it, "then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee."

So at this point in the story Jesus has presumably instructed the gathering crowd to go to the other side of the Sea of Galilee to the country of the Gadarenes. But despite his orders a scribe stays behind, approaches Jesus and says there in verse 19, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go."

So this is the setting of here in verses 18-22.

Now, if you’ll recall we’ve talked about scribes before in the past, so I’ll just briefly describe who these men where. At this point in history the title scribe was essentially synonymous with term lawyer, which means they were typically interpreters and teachers of the law of Moses (Torah). They were the originators of the synagogue service, where they would read and explain the Scriptures to their fellow Jewish people. Many of them belonged to the party of the Pharisees, but as a whole were distinct from them. And although the majority of them opposed Jesus, some did believe, as we see here in our text today.

And on the outset this particular scribe seems to make quite an encouraging declaration, he says, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” But Jesus responds in such a manner that there’s little doubt in my mind that this man was, at least at first, probably left disheartened and dismayed. In verse 20 we read,

English Standard Version Chapter 8

20 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”

Many of them belonged to the party of the Pharisees, but as a whole were distinct from them. And although the majority of them opposed Jesus, some did believe, as we see here in our text today. This

Now, despite his orders a scribe stays behind, approaches Jesus and says, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." And in verse 21 we read that yet another disciple remains and says to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."

If you’re following along in your Bible there’s probably a heading above verse 18 which reads something like this, “The Cost of Discipleship” or “The Cost of Following Jesus”. Which is precisely what Jesus is pointing out here to this scribe. He’s telling him to take his proclamation seriously, to soberly think upon what he’s committing himself to.

In essence, he’s telling him to count the cost. We see similar statements by Jesus throughout the Gospel accounts. One of which is in , starting in verse 25, so turn with me, if you would, to and let’s read it together,

English Standard Version Chapter 14

The Cost of Discipleship

25 Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. 27 Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. 28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? 29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 31 Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

Jesus explains to us that there is great cost associated with following him.

Now a much smaller and more personal example of what Jesus is doing here is when I’m often asked to take someone on a hike up the local volcano here on our island. It’s somewhat of a long and hard physical feat so my immediate thought is almost always, “Does this person realize what they’re asking?” or “Does this person realize what such a hike will entail?”, “Are they willing to endure bad weather?”, “Are they willing to keep hiking even if their feet or muscles hurt?”

Despite his orders a scribe stays behind, approaches Jesus and says, "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go." And in verse 21 we read that yet another disciple remains and says to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."

And if I’ve never gone on a hike with this particular person before, it’s a real gamble to take them on such a grueling trek. I don’t know if they’re going to give-up after the first day, or come to realize they’ve bitten off more than they can chew halfway into it or not. So what I try to do on the outset of our conversation is give them a sober understanding of what their request will demand of them, which is precisely what Jesus is doing here.

He wants this scribe to take seriously what he’s saying, and to understand what his commitment will look like. Jesus didn’t simply intend to take the wind out of his sails just to be mean spirited, no he cares enough for this man to help him think through his commitment, to rightly understand what following Jesus will look like, that he might have right expectations. That’s why we read there in verse 20 where Jesus says,

English Standard Version Chapter 8

“Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”

Jesus is warning this scribe that following him will be costly, that following him will be difficult, that following Jesus may mean that foxes and bird’s will have better accommodations than his disciples. That following Jesus is not a one way ticket to having your best life now. And in this particular conversation Jesus emphasizes that not even the Son of Man has a place to lay his head, therefore if not even the Son of Man has a place to call home, his disciples should expect no better reality.

Now what’s particularly important to notice is the title that Jesus attributes to himself. He calls himself the ‘Son of Man’. He says that not even the Son of Man has a place to lay his head. Now what’s interesting about Jesus’ use of this title is that he pulls it straight out of the Book of Daniel, and that this title carries with it meaning that this scribe would have immediately understood. Yet for many of us, I think we can miss its significant altogether.

So turn with me, if you would, to the Book of Daniel in chapter 7, starting in verse 9. We’re going to jump into the middle of one of Daniels prophetic visions of the heavenly throne room,

English Standard Version Chapter 7

The Ancient of Days Reigns

9 “As I looked,

thrones were placed,

and the Ancient of Days took his seat;

his clothing was white as snow,

and the hair of his head like pure wool;

his throne was fiery flames;

its wheels were burning fire.

10 A stream of fire issued

and came out from before him;

a thousand thousands served him,

and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him;

the court sat in judgment,

and the books were opened.

We see here a description of the Father sitting on his throne in all his glory, and then if we skip down to verse 13 we read of another person coming forward,

English Standard Version Chapter 7

The Son of Man Is Given Dominion

13 “I saw in the night visions,

and behold, with the clouds of heaven

there came one like a son of man,

and he came to the Ancient of Days

and was presented before him.

14 And to him was given dominion

and glory and a kingdom,

that all peoples, nations, and languages

should serve him;

his dominion is an everlasting dominion,

which shall not pass away,

and his kingdom one

that shall not be destroyed.

“There came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days,” this is who Jesus is claiming to be, the Son of Man. The one to whom “was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages should serve him,” this is the one who’s “dominion is an everlasting dominion,” one that will “not pass away.” And it’s this same Son of Man who “has nowhere to lay his head.”

This is the cost of discipleship, so let us not be dismayed when things get hard, let us come to expect that following Christ will not always be easy, let us not be caught unaware, as though something strange were happening to us, when tribulation or trial comes. May we have a sober understanding of what it means to follow Jesus. This why Peter would later call the people of God “elect exiles” and “sojourners” in his letters to the church, because as Christians this world is not our home.

This why Peter would later call the people of God “elect exiles” and “sojourners” in his letters to the church.

Leave the dead to bury their own dead

Now not only do we read that a scribe stayed behind, we read that another disciple has remained to make a request of Jesus, we read there in verse 21 and 22,

English Standard Version Chapter 8

21 Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.”

So on one hand we’ve seen that following Jesus will be difficult, that the road will likely be hard, but here we learn something else, that being a disciple will require that our greatest responsibility will be to our Lord.

English Standard Version Chapter 8

21 Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 22 And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.”

One thing that’s comforting about this text for those of us who call ourselves disciples of Christ, is that Jesus isn’t calling us to anything that he hasn’t first subjected himself to.

English Standard Version Chapter 8

21 Another of the disciples said to him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 22 And Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.”

One thing that’s comforting about this text for those of us who call ourselves disciples of Christ, is that Jesus isn’t calling us to anything that he hasn’t first subjected himself to.

In verses 21 and 22 we see this man’s responsibility to his family contrasted with his responsibility to his Lord. Within Jewish culture, for the eldest son, taking care of his father’s burial would have been paramount, making him exempt from all other activities, including his work and even his religious responsibilities. All of these things would have been set aside for the sake of taking care of his father’s burial. However, what we see here is that Jesus informs this man that his responsibility to his Lord is greater than is responsibility to his family, that if following Jesus means leaving someone else to bury his father then so be it.

Now, it isn’t that Jesus is putting himself in opposition to his command for us to honor our father and mother, but rather following Jesus ought to be of the highest priority. What Jesus means here is that our loyalty to family should never exceed the loyalty we have to our Lord. “There is no earthly excuse that would permit [us]” from avoiding the call to follow Jesus (R.C. Sproul, Matthew Commentary, p. 244). We ought to have undivided submission.

One of the early church fathers, John Chrysostom, put it this way, “... nothing ought to be to us more urgent than the affairs of the kingdom of heaven.” (Homilies on the Gospel of Saint Matthew, 27.3)

Conclusion

As we wrap up looking at this text today, I t

If you’ll recall, last week we read from Acts chapter 14 where Paul is said to have been strengthening the souls of the disciples in Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch. And how does the text describe him do this? In verse 22 we read,

English Standard Version Chapter 14

encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.

Paul

And in verse 21 we read that yet another disciple remains and says to him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."

Earlier we looked at when Jesus spoke of these very same things, and in similar fashion, with great crowds accompanying him, he turns and says to them,

English Standard Version Chapter 14

26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. 27

In this case Jesus uses hyperbole, or exaggeration, to make a point that unless we’re willing to love him so unreservedly that all other loves seem as hatred in comparison then we cannot be his disciples. Whether it’s the love we have for ourselves or for our family, Jesus must take precedence. He goes on to say,

English Standard Version Chapter 14

33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

The bottom line is that following Christ will cost us everything, but the good news is that following Christ worth more anything!

What really stands out from this text here today is that despite the large crowds that followed Jesus, true discipleship remained a minority movement, and I think we see why here today. However, the good news is that Jesus did not leave us without help. You may recall

Matthew 8:18-22

Introduction

Leave the dead to bury their own dead

Conclusion

Prayer